Since time immemorial (or anyway, as long as I can remember), I have been fascinated by stories and storytelling. I started writing when I was in middle school and basically have never stopped, though most of my fiction has yet to see the light of day.

I started working as a freelance editor in 2010 after being downsized, mainly as a way to help bring in a little money while trying to find a job. That turned into a full career, as it turns out a lot of people want to hand me money in exchange for the expertise I picked up in research, phrasing, characterization, and networking.

This lead to being a convention speaker as well, where I went from “People actually want to hear me talk?” to “I can’t believe this many people want to hear me talk.” I can’t imagine ever being jaded at the sight of a standing-room-only crowd who heard I might know what I’m doing. Thank you, everyone. You are literally the reason I do this.

As of 2014, however, Novel Ninja is no longer my day job. I was hired by a company as a full-time nonfiction editor, seduced away by an amazing package. Yes, I sold out. But not entirely; part of the agreement was that I could still go to events and conventions, and I am still looking at manuscripts (just not nearly as many as I used to). Novel Ninja is still what I enjoy most of all.

As for what I enjoy myself: I love science fiction, fantasy, and mystery, cats (though I have none), and I’m a fanboy for both Lego and the Cruxshadows. In May 2015, I founded another website, The Catholic Geeks, an opinion/review site that looks at things that fall under the heading of either “geeky” or “Roman Catholic,” preferably both.

Due to my obligations, I’m limited in the number of conventions I can attend each year, even if the convention is paying for everything. You can see my current schedule and list of prepared topics by clicking on this shiny and tempting link.